When David Beckham came over from England to try and boost street cred for MLS, it was a big deal. It didn’t, however, give the league that Beatles-come-to-America makeover we all thought it might. It captured our curiosity but didn’t demand our attention.
Less than 90-minutes into his MLS career, Zlatan Ibrahimovic demanded attention on a level the MLS probably wasn’t expecting. He’s long been one of Europe’s best footballers, but his MLS debut catapulted the sport to peak Twitter in ways that haven’t happened before.
Maybe Beckham could have bent social media if it has existed at the time as it does now.